1. Field of the Invention
Drying apparatus for multiple articles located in separate chambers for treatment with an ambient or heated, and/or treated air flow stream; and processes for drying multiple articles located in separate chambers using an ambient or heated, and/or treated air flow stream.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Active sports such as hockey, football, lacrosse, and the like require, in addition to sports clothing, equipment for use in playing the game and for protecting the player. Such clothing and equipment items are usually not worn to and from the sporting event or practice; but are usually transported in some sort of a portable closed container such as a sports bag or specialty container. During vigorous play such clothing and equipment items tend to become damp or wet with the player's perspiration, and also by being exposed to wet weather or wet playing conditions. After play or practice is completed, if such damp or wet gear is left in a closed container, the gear tends to be acted upon by bacteria and mold, and as a result, becoming foul smelling and rank, and subject to deterioration. Research has shown that such odors are a byproduct of bacteria and mold that grow readily in the moist, dark generally stagnant environment inside the closed container. Some of the resulting bacteria may also become a source for infections when they come into contact with an open cut or abrasion on the body of a user the next time the gear is worn. In addition, items left inside a closed container dry so slowly that they may still be wet the next time they are removed from the closed container.
In order to dry their equipment and to prevent the secondary problems noted above, athletes have taken such mundane steps as spreading their damp items out on the floor or hanging them on racks after each use, and then returning them to the container. In more aggressive efforts, they have taken the steps of removing their damp items from their containers, and then used standard or specialized equipment to dry them, and then returning them to the container. There have also been several specialized bags, devices, or containers developed to dry and sanitize athletic equipment or clothing of athletes. Some are small and portable, some are large and stationary, some are hard sided and some are made of flexible material. Of these, some are intended to dry the to-be-treated-items while others only sanitize them. Most of these known prior art systems for treating damp to-be-treated-items have some common characteristics. Further discussion of prior art drying and sanitizing containers are set forth in greater detail below in the discussion of FIG. 1, under the “DESCRIPTION AND DISCUSSION OF THE PRIOR ART”. FIG. 1 shows, diagrammatically, several examples of prior art drying systems, all of which are quite different in structure and operation from the structure and operation of the present invention as described below.
As is discussed below and shown in FIG. 1, it will be seen that a fair analysis of the known shown and discussed prior art drying and sanitizing container systems leads to a conclusion that they suffer from the same short comings. Those shortcomings include the fact that once a drying air flow stream has been passed into a drying chamber, the drying air flow stream is subject to being blocked and diverted by the to-be-treated-items in the drying chamber. Also, external conduits, enclosed mixing chambers, multiple fans, manifolds, and distributors add cost and complexity to the prior art drying units.
In all of the known prior art systems, the problem of dead air spots, reduced air stream flow, and of obstructive blockages of the air flow stream still remain. It will be seen that in every system, once the drying air passes into the drying chamber, it is poorly directed to and around the to-be-treated-items. Therefore, there clearly exists a need for a more effective apparatus and method for applying an effective quality, quantity, and velocity of drying air flow stream or sanitizing agent directly to the to-be-treated-items in a system that is inexpensive and uncomplicated by multiple fans, manifolds, and distributors.
It will be seen that the drying systems of the present invention provide a solution to the aforementioned and below described problems, by providing structures and operations that can, for example, move a single air flow stream through a series of serially connected chambers, thereby resulting in an efficient, effective, inexpensive, uncomplicated drying and sanitizing structure and operation.